Newsletter February 2014

Dear alumni,

If we didn’t get the chance to meet you at our New Year’s Drinks this year, we would like to wish you a very happy 2014 this way (a little late, we know…). Here’s another UCAA Newsletter to keep you up to date, with exciting announcements and more events coming up!

Forever yours,

The UCAA Board

Welcome to Somaye and Tanya

After a great year, our Chair Luisa Kühlmann (’09) and PR Officer Indra Spronk-Baas (’06) have had to leave the UCAA Board to do other awesome things instead. We would like to thank them once again for their hard work!

We’re very happy to welcome Somaye Dehban (’07) as our new Chair and Tanya van Goch (’12½) as our new PR Officer. Both are very enthusiastic and full of ideas to make the UCAA even better. Read more about them on our website soon!

Pub Quiz

What is Egypt’s national currency? Which prime number is the next highest after 31? Who won the Wimbledon Men’s singles championship consecutively from 1997 to 2000? Think you know the answers to these questions? Come to the annual UCAA pub quiz on March 8th and test your knowledge (after a few pints of beer). This year will be the last time with our amazing quiz masters Hans, Karel and Casper, so we’d really like to see you there!

Career Conference

On April 1st UCU alumni and students join hands to discuss and discover new opportunties on the labour market during the annual Career Conference. Companies represented range from Sothebey to McKinsey and Google. An excellent chance for you to (re)discover your future employer. Registration will open soon!

Post

Last month we sent out almost 2000 copies of Post. We’re really proud of this Winter edition themed around budget cuts and wouldn’t want you to miss it. Watch your mailbox very closely, or innocent-looking neighbors might try to steal it. If you have a big pad lock on your mailbox and still didn’t receive it, you should definitely update your address with us via ucaa.nl/address.

A Night With Your Favorite Teachers

A Night With Your Favorite Teachers
A Night With Your Favorite Teachers

 

Alumni back in the auditorium! On Monday, the UCAA hosted its very first Academic Event with three epic UCU teachers taking the floor. Patricia Post, Alexis Aronowitz, and Rosemary Orr dazzled the audience, and stirred up quite the questions! Here with our beautiful UCAA members Indra and Januschka.

 

 

Vacancy

Always wanted to be chair? This is your chance!

Are you an excellent delegator, a brilliant public speaker and a dazzling negotiator? Are you looking for an opportunity to prove yourself? This is your chance: the UCAA is looking for a new chair!

As a chair, your first responsibility is the proper functioning of the board. This includes chairing meetings and knowing exactly what needs to be done, but also finding new board members when necessary. Secondly, you’re in charge of maintaining the official relations with UCU, and the student organizations UCSA and ASC. In this position, you will be representing the UCAA with a speech during UCU’s graduation ceremony twice a year. Finally, the UCAA’s short- and long-term strategies are in your hands.

Is this you?

  • You have experience being part of a board; chair or management experience is even better.
  • You have a vision and you’re able to convey it.
  • You’re well-organized and you like to take initiative.
  • You graduated from UCU and still feel connected.
  • You’re able to attend meetings in Utrecht both during office hours (with UCU staff) and evening hours (with the board). Living in or close to Utrecht is a plus.
  • You’re available for about six hours per week, working from home or the UCAA office on campus, starting from December 1.

In return, this position will give you:

  • Valuable experience in chairing an organization on the border of education, including professional contacts with the UCU management.
  • Appreciation from over two thousand alumni and a chance to contribute to campus again.
  • An excellent addition to your CV.
  • A motivated and fun team to work with, consisting of alumni ranging from the class of ’06 to the class of ’13.
  • A small financial compensation every year for your time and effort.

Does this sound like something that you are cut out for? Send your CV and a short motivation to info@ucaa.nl before Monday, November 16. For more information, contact Roeland van Beek at the above email address or via 030–2539858.

Newsletter November 2013

Dear alumni,

While the year is approaching its end and the days are getting darker, here’s another bright UCAA newsletter. Lots of events coming up, but we also need your help! Feedback is always welcome at info@ucaa.nl!

Sincerely yours,

The UCAA Board

A Night With Your Favorite Teachers

UCAA is proud to present: A night with your favorite teachers (from way back when)! The amazing ladies Patricia Post, Rosemary Orr and Alexis Aronowitz are going to blow your mind with three separate minilectures on November 18 at the UCU Auditorium. Doors open at 7.15 PM. Come, listen and be as amazed at all the wisdom as you were when you were in the best classes that UCU had to offer. Join the Facebook event to stay updated!

Change

Fall brings about changes. Here at the UCAA, we have experienced some as well, as we have welcomed a new member! Januschka Veldstra (’13) is already busy organizing some great upcoming events. We are happy to have her enthusiastic and creative presence here with us!

Kiran Coleman, our former Chair, has left us after three years of dedicated service to the UCU alumni community. Thank you Kiran!

Call for regional representatives

We are looking for new regional representatives for Oxford, Paris, and Rotterdam. As regional representative, you play a very important role within the alumni world. Your goal is to connect alumni in the city/area by organising an event a couple of times a year. These can be drinks, dinners, whatever you can think of to allow alumni to stay in touch. Interested? Email Januschka at info@ucaa.nl.

Contribute to Post

UCAA’s absolutely positively awesomest alumni magazine Post is coming up in December again! This means good things will be coming to your mailbox in a while – if you’ve updated your address that is. Also, if you’d like to contribute to Post by writing an article, making illustrations or letting us use your photos, you are more than welcome to send us an email at info@ucaa.nl.

Upcoming events

We have some cool events in store for you again! There is the mini lectures night on November 18, but there’s more. Alumni in London can go to the ‘Welcome to London’ drinks that will take place early November, while Amsterdam-based alumni can meet up on November 22 (see Facebook for more info). Finally, there will be New Year’s drinks in Utrecht on January 4, 2014, and we will have another Pub Quiz in February. Make sure to check ucaa.nl regularly for updates on upcoming events!

Looking back

On September 6, UCU celebrated its 15th anniversary on campus with the theme of “Liberal Arts & Science Education and the Labor Market”. It was nothing less than a great success! Alumni came from all over the world to attend. Together with employers, they discussed the roles of personal initiative and striving for excellence in one’s career development during an open forum. Afterwards, alumni divided into smaller groups and conversed on a very personal level how they utilized their UCU experiences to help them overcome various hurdles. A joyous Biergarten, formal dinner, and party ensured that enough light conversation (and alcohol) rounded this extraordinary day off.

New board member!

We are happy to announce our new board member, Januschka Veldstra (’13)! Januschka will be working as Events Coordinator and will be busy organizing many exciting (and new) activities for you. We are looking forward to working together, so stay posted!

Our Chair Kiran Coleman has left after three dedicated years with UCAA. We wish him all the best in his new adventures!

Who is currently on the board? Check the “Board” page right here!